Sonne Finance and BlockTower Capital Fall Victim to Hacking: Losses Surpass $20 Million

Cyvers, a blockchain security firm, detected a coordinated attack in the early hours of May 15 in Asia, resulting in substantial losses for Sonne Finance and BlockTower Capital.

Sonne Finance's Optimism Market, an integral component of its operations, was immediately suspended following the attack.

Rapid Escalation: Cyvers Reports Multi-Million Dollar Theft from Sonne Finance's Crypto Contracts

Initially, Cyvers reported a theft of $3 million from Sonne's USD Coin (USDC) and Wrapped Ethereum (WETH) contracts on the Optimism chain. However, the situation rapidly deteriorated, with the estimated loss escalating to a staggering $20 million within 30 minutes.

In response to the alarming development, Cyvers urgently advised Sonne Finance to take immediate action.

Sonne Finance Responds to Crypto Theft: Markets Paused, Vigilance Urged

Approximately one hour later, Sonne Finance acknowledged the incident via a tweet on X (Twitter), assuring users that all markets on Optimism had been paused, while those on Base remained unaffected. The team pledged to provide further updates as the situation unfolded.

However, amid the chaos, malicious actors attempted to exploit the situation by impersonating Sonne Finance on social media platforms. A fraudulent X account issued warnings and shared suspicious links urging users to revoke approvals to mitigate potential losses. This deceitful tactic underscores the opportunistic nature of cybercriminals in the cryptocurrency space.

A Fake Sonne Finance Account Shared a Suspicious Link. Source:X/SonneFinence

BlockTower Capital Hit by Cyber Attack: Funds Partially Drained, Perpetrator Eludes Capture

In a separate development, BlockTower Capital, a prominent crypto investment firm, fell victim to a cyber attack, resulting in the partial drainage of funds from its main hedge fund. Despite hiring blockchain forensics analysts to track the stolen funds, the perpetrator remains at large, and the missing funds have yet to be recovered.

The frequency of hacking incidents in the crypto space may have decreased by over 65% as of April 2024, as reported by BeInCrypto. However, the magnitude of losses remains significant, with the total losses from crypto-related security incidents reaching $71.39 million in the period covered by the SlowMist Weekly Security Report from April 28 to May 4, 2024.

This latest attack on Sonne Finance underscores the vulnerabilities inherent in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, emphasizing the imperative need for robust security measures to safeguard digital assets against malicious actors.